The anticipation in the air is tangible. Aside from a Glastonbury warm-up show in Cardiff, this is the first time Super Furry Animals have played in South Wales since the Rings Around The World tour rolled around way back when.

More remarkably, it's also the first time SFA have ever played Newport. For those who were unable to make the Pesda Roc festival up north in June, this is the long awaited homecoming.

But before they can take the stage, it's time for the hometown debut of Newport's finest, the mighty Goldie Lookin' Chain. With two Cardiff gigs behind them and an appearance at the Pop Factory in Porth, people were starting to wonder if they'd turned their back on the 'Port.

Not so. Everybody loves the GLC, and they were asked by SFA personally to appear tonight. They don't disappoint: from goofy opener Self Suicide, to Shit To Me's attack on plastic R&B stars and the heavy metal tribute Silver Shadow, they're received like old friends, even if the lousy sound doesn't do them any justice.

As with the GLC's recent Cardiff shows, The Maggot is the biggest star, with his (oliver) twisted tales of scamming and scheming. And with 'your mother's got a penis' fast replacing 'you knows it' as the new mantra for the GLC army, the group almost manage to upstage tonight's headliners.

Almost, but not quite. Busy drawing rings around the world with their first global tour in two years, SFA are currently at their live peak. Although hindered by some sound problems which found Gruff Rhys' vocals mostly inaudible for the opening three songs, tonight the Furries are on awesome form.

Flanked by two ten-foot horses, and with Pete Fowler's animations on the screen behind them, they begin with the epic Slow Life. But despite half of tonight's songs taken from Phantom Power, SFA can't resist outdoing themselves at every turn. So, while Hello Sunshine and Liberty Belle sound beautiful live, they can barely compete with the crowd's clear joy at hearing Northern Lites or Demons once again.

Less successful are Sex, War & Robots, featuring some shaky vocals from Bunf, and Cityscape Skybaby, which struggles to leap from recording to stage. But for the most part, SFA are effortlessly cruising towards excellence.

For the final third of the gig, the Super Furries are on fire. As The Piccolo Snare drifts into its Krautrock close, they step up a gear and delight everyone with Juxtapozed With U and a monumental singalong during Hermann Loves Pauline.

They finish, as ever, with The Man Don't Give A F**k, kicking off with a sampled Bill Hicks and ending in Cian's 15-minute techno excursion.

As the band return for a final stand - dressed as yetis, naturally - they're joined onstage by first support group Dead Meadow, Goldie Lookin' Chain and a spliff-and-tambourine-wielding Howard Marks. This is Super Furry Animals at their best: in control, transcendent, unstoppable.